It is only the middle of April and we have torn out several flooded finished basements. Most of the water that caused these was from waterproofing issues.  An underlying theme however was the time factor. People are just letting things go for a long time. One flood has set wet on and off for 4 years at least according to the owner. This caused the drywall to turn black with mold along the bottom edge. and all the molding and doors too. The carpet had a thousand mushrooms growing on it.

I think the biggest loss was from some antique books from the late 1800′s and early 1900′s. They were destroyed. The owner went through all this themselves. We took care of the finished basement demolition and clean-up and sanitation. All the water was coming in from the outside from under the floor.  So we installed a full perimeter drainage system. The place is high and dry now.

I think because of the economy, people are putting this important work off for as long as possible.  Afraid to fix this stuff for fear of overspending. Too bad you couldn’t see what I have seen. If this was my house I wouldn’t wait five minutes.

If you get a basement flood it is too late to do anything about it. The time is now before something something happens. Get metal or plastic shelves to store stuff on. Get a battery back up sump pump installed. Don’t store any cardboard. Keep everything in those plastic boxes. Replace the hoses to your washing machine. Fix your waterproofing issues. Raise everything off the floor. Never assume it won’t happen to you.